After a one-minute intro of straight up mosh this Puerto Rican metalcore act continues in a similar vein with nothing but classic styled metallic hardcore in the NYHC tradition, but with a little added metal to make things moshier. Oh, and the vocals? They're fuckin' nuts. Totally over the top yells that sound like the dude has completely obliterated his vocal chords. I'd be pretty into this stuff since it's way in your face and I'm all for basic metallic hardcore that revolves around a mix of moderately fast hardcore runs and massive breakdowns, but the recording on this one's just not doing it for me. The vocals have an insane amount of texture, which is cool, but the guitar tone needs a lot of work. It's pretty heavy but sounds really distant and obscured, almost like the band's playing in a steel corridor or something. The drums are too taut, as is often the case, but if everything else was in order they'd work better (they do need to sound much more organic, though). But I also can't spot one iota of bass guitar, sans a few distinct breaks. So... even though I've heard worse, these guys would be far better off with a crisper and more robust sound that would represent the vibe of the songs better. The songs are pretty similar to one another, following the same general style and offering only mild tempo changes, never hitting three minutes in order to keep things concise and to the point. "Crisis Within" is a great midpaced track that stands out strictly based on the quality of the riffs and its no bullshit formula; "Clear Convictions" picks up the pace a little and ends up being more memorable than most of the other songs (though the drumming admittedly gets off time and sometimes sounds digital thanks to the overly taut kick drum tones); and "Tough Guy" is also heavier and uses a bit more speed to add energy to its ranks. "Arrepientete" is slower and much chunkier, and even though the vocals are in Spanish, you can't tell because the shouts are so blown out that you can't decipher a word of lyrics anyway! The layout keeps it simple with some band photos (in which almost all of the members are oddly sporting clothes that boast the names of US states - Michigan, Texas, New York, etc.) and a little bit of tattoo styled artwork. The lyrics on this one are way too blatantly christian for me to really handle, what with numerous direct references to god and Jesus and such in tracks that speak out against selfishness, violence, etc. Though at times the language barrier strips things down to an overly simple level, which might have something to do with it (which would of course be understandable). The music is cool, though. And the vocals are great, I really enjoy their uniquely intense delivery. I hope these guys nail a better recording next time out, because they'd come across as much more forceful as a result. Time will tell...
[Strike First]
Running time - 27:26, Tracks: 12
[Notable tracks: Crisis Within, Clear Convictions, Tough Guy]
Strike First Records - http://www.strikefirstrecords.com
